One of the most unpleasant, but seemingly almost unavoidable mishaps in using a motor vehicle is that there is insufficient electrical power left in the rechargeable battery to start up the engine. Such eventualities may be caused by lack of attention of the operator, age of the battery, failure of the charging system, ambient conditions, or numerous other factors. The problem is particularly pervasive in cold climates, and affects literally thousands of engine starting applications, particularly in recreational or seasonal use devices.
Similar problems also affect devices other than motor vehicles. For example, emergency generators are often battery started, and cannot be conveniently started when the battery is dead.
Inability to start an engine can have relatively high costs. For example, pilots frequently fly into airports or remote grass strips where no auxiliary power is available, and sometimes become stranded if the on-board battery fails. Boaters also find themselves caught with dead batteries in locations where it may be impossible to easily "jump start" their engines. Automobile motorists also often become stranded with dead batteries in their vehicles, often at very inconvenient times and locations.
There are basically three classes of devices available for emergency starting of automobiles, airplanes, boats, generators and other apparatus using internal combustion engines. Unfortunately, all such devices tend to be quite cumbersome to use.
Perhaps the most widely used class of emergency starting apparatus is characterized by simple jumper cables. Jumper cables typically comprise two shielded wires, about 6 to 10 feet long, which are capable of carrying upwards of 200 Amps for short periods of time. Clamps or clips are generally connected to the ends of the wires to aid in securing electrical contact with battery terminals and "ground" points on the apparatus being started. Known jumper cables are advantageous in being relatively inexpensive and readily configurable for convenient storage, but they suffer from several disadvantages as well. Among other things, jumper cables require an outside power source, such as the battery of a running automobile or other vehicle, to provide the energy transmitted to the battery being jumped. That requirement is of critical importance when another vehicle is unavailable, and also when another vehicle is available, but cannot be positioned close enough for the jumper cables to connect the respective batteries. Still further, jumper cables are problematic, and even dangerous, in requiring the proper connection of four connectors. Improper connection can result in dangerous sparks or even explosions.
Another class of emergency starting apparatus is characterized by start carts. These are wheeled vehicles containing a large capacity battery, or bank of batteries, electrically coupled to high capacity electrically conducting cables. Depending on the anticipated usage, the cables may have either general-purpose clamps or specialized endmounted connectors. Small start carts mounted on hand truck frames are familiar features in used and new automobile car dealerships, while larger, motor vehicle sized start carts are commonly used in airports to start airplanes. The batteries in start carts are generally recharged using line current at a recharging station, although they may also not carry their own recharging power source. Major advantages of start carts are their mobility and relatively high electrical storage capacity. A major disadvantage, however, is that start carts are inherently too bulky and heavy to be generally carried about in motor vehicles.
A third class of emergency starting apparatus is characterized by trickle or other battery chargers. Known chargers are typically small devices measuring only a few inches in each dimension, and are therefore quite portable. Unfortunately, they require an outside power source such as line current from a standard household electrical outlet plug. Known chargers also typically have relatively low charging rates, and therefore require several hours to recharge a battery with sufficient energy to be used in starting a motor.
Thus, there is a continuing need to provide methods and apparatus that supply electrical power for starting engines.